Dither til Dawn
by Misty Reeyus
Summary: "Rokurou…have you ever thought about having kids?" [Rokurou/Eleanor, pillow talk]


minific prompt #1: things you said at 1 am

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"Rokurou…have you ever thought about having kids?"

Eleanor's voice rings out from behind him as a whisper, spoken softly and hesitantly, but with enough intent that he knows she fully meant for him to hear. Rokurou blinks twice at the question before glancing to the dimly-lit clock above the door—a bit past one in the morning, so it's just that time of night, he supposes. That time when you're lying beside each other in the aftermath of sex, when you should both really be falling asleep but neither of you are, so instead, you talk about anything. About things that might not have even crossed your mind were it any other hour of the day.

"Can't say that I have," Rokurou mumbles, rolling over until he's staring at the back of her head. "Why? Have you?"

Eleanor shifts, her hand reaching up to tuck a stray strand of hair back behind her ear. Slowly, she nods.

"You wanna talk about it?"

Eleanor lies motionless for a minute before she nods again, then turns over to face him.

"I mean, it wouldn't be any time soon, of course. My work keeps me busy enough as is." But her eyes gloss over in the dim moonlight, and their gaze is almost dreamy. "Still, I…I just can't stop thinking about it. Becoming a mother someday. Starting my own family."

"There's no shortage of people who would be willing to start a family with you." Hell, she's only gotten propositioned for marriage by random schmucks a good five times, probably more that Rokurou never witnessed for himself. But even as the words leave his tongue, Rokurou knows that's not what she was getting at.

Eleanor rolls her eyes at him, unimpressed. "They're not the ones I'm talking to right now."

Rokurou purses his lips.

"Eleanor, I…" He trails off, aimless. Just what is he supposed to say to that?

"I wouldn't ask you to settle down. I know you're not the type," Eleanor assures. "Being a mother is my own selfish dream, and I won't demand that you be a part of it. But I really do want to have a child." She meets his gaze pointedly, green eyes shining like steel. "And the only person I'd want to have one with is you."

Rokurou exhales slowly, glancing down at the mattress. Eleanor's serious about almost everything, but she's clearly _dead_ serious about this.

"We're not even sure if it's possible with me," Rokurou finally manages, the words slightly croaky, his throat suddenly dry. After all, he's not human. Sure, they use condoms and Eleanor's on the pill, because she wanted that safety and he wasn't about to deny her. But neither of them know definitively how daemonhood might or might not affect procreation. There hasn't exactly been much research done on the subject.

"I know. If it isn't possible, then that's that, and believe me, I've thought plenty about adopting, too. But even so, I'd like us to at least try sometime." Eleanor places her hand on his arm, delivers a gentle squeeze. "Only if it would be okay with you, that is. I don't mean to push."

Rokurou sighs, running his hand through his hair. He loves _this_ , this thing he has with Eleanor right now, and he's come to realize over the years that there's nobody else in the world who could ever make him feel this way. But they're both still leading very different lives—Eleanor's a savior, the next great hero aiming to change the world, while Rokurou's a wandering fighter, a rogue daemon who cares for nothing more than finding the next opponent with whom he can test his strength.

They're together now, but not all the time. Their relationship is put on hold whenever their paths separate, and is then picked right back up when they conjoin again. It's what they both like, and it _works_ for them, but to toss a kid right in with all of that, too?

It'd definitely complicate things. But then, if it's what Eleanor wants, does Rokurou even really mind?

"…Look, Eleanor, like I said. I've never put any thought into it before." Rokurou shrugs, meeting her eyes again. "I can't give you a yes right now. But of the same token, I guess I can't honestly give you a no, either. All I can tell you is that I'll do whatever I want, whenever I want. Like I always have."

Eleanor nods. "Of course, I understand. That's who you are, and I'd never fault you for that. I just wanted to toss the idea out there."

Rokurou sinks a little into the mattress, now decidedly more relaxed, and lets his thoughts wander to what that potential family would even be like. He's never been inclined to think about it before, but now that they're on the subject, he lingers on the image—and Rokurou can't help chuckling aloud.

"You realize me having a kid would make one _hell_ of a weird family picture though, right?" Rokurou brandishes his hand between them, counting off with his fingers. "One, I'm a daemon. Two, my idea of family is _hack-slash-kill_ , remember?"

"If your daemonhood mattered to me, we wouldn't be here." Eleanor's hand drifts up until she's cupping his cheek in her palm, brushing her thumb over the blackened skin beneath his right eye. "And you said it yourself, the Rangetsu clan is gone now. You don't live by their rules anymore."

Rokurou smirks. He supposes he can't deny that.

"Also, you're great with children, Rokurou," Eleanor continues, a fond curl to her lips. "I've seen you with Kamoana, and how you were with Laphicet, too. So for what it's worth, I think you'd be an amazing father."

"I dunno about that," Rokurou drawls. "But one thing's for sure. You'd _definitely_ be an amazing mother."

Eleanor flushes pink, flattered delight blooming over her face. Rokurou really did mean what he said, he's sure she'd be perfect mother material, but getting to see her light up all adorably like this is definitely a nice bonus.

"Thank you, Rokurou. And thanks for listening to me about something so selfish."

"Well, hey, you're in no rush, right? Then it's something we can both think about more later on."

Eleanor beams. "Yes, absolutely."

Rokurou grins in return, then inches closer until he can latch his lips to her neck. Somehow, all this serious talk has gotten him all wound up again, and he finds he could use a good release right now. Humming into her skin, he tests the waters by trailing kisses down her neck, making sure his intentions are clear, before stopping at her collarbone. Even if Rokurou wants to go for another round, if she's not in the mood, he'll stop right here.

Thankfully though, Eleanor shifts against him happily, parting the covers and turning onto her back so that he can straddle her properly. He allows himself a moment to take in her form, beautifully bare and pinned beneath him, before he gets right back to business. Rokurou peppers his lips lightly over the rough, puckered orange skin of her chest, because as much as Eleanor still isn't exactly proud of that scar, she's made it clear to him on multiple occasions that she actually _really_ likes it whenever he treats that spot with adoration.

"For now," Rokurou murmurs into her flesh, "how about we just enjoy ourselves?"

He grazes the pads of his fingers over her sides in light, teasing strokes, and Eleanor giggles slightly as she stretches her arm over to the nightstand. Snatching up another condom from the tabletop, she tucks the package between her fingers before reaching up to him with both hands, curling her arms around his neck.

"For now," Eleanor echoes, tugging him in until they're nose to nose and her words are brushing over his lips, "this is just fine by me."


End file.
